The Secret Adventures of WriterGirl

Current Theme Song (aka what's playing on my ipod right now): Black Roses Red by Alana Grace.


The Archived Adventures!

Okay, so this was supposed to be up last night, so just squeeze your eyes really hard and pretend that it was. And I'm cheating a bit. Today I am showing you PROOF about all the strangeness of my life! Okay, I really wanted to take a picture of a businessman with an ipod in, but I'm not discreet like that and I don't know how to take pictures from my hip ("hipshots" for anyone wanting to sound all well-versed in photography;), so you'll just have to take my word on that one.




See? They're all missing brothers somewhere. Ice cream is awesome in the goblets, and if you want a cup of seriously intense hot cocoa, put it in the tiny mug in front, the one with the fruit on it (why is it always fruit?).




Okay, so this wasn't technically on the list, but its funny nonetheless. This is how we communally tell whether we can eat off the stuff in the dishwasher. And it's torn. And it was written in crayon. :)




Records on the wall! Ah, those good ole' LPs. They make me happy, even if they were before my time.




This one really is blackmail. Oh, I was so tempted to not include this (or at least straighten it up a bit, goodness) but there you have it. My wardrobe NOT where it belongs (take a lesson children). But you can see books in the background. And Artichoke Hearts is next on my reading list!




Ah! Now you know where I sleep! It's a little bit sad, but nice in a homey sort of way. And yes, that is a horse on the blanket. My little sister let me borrow it so I wouldn't be lonely over here. There is the heater next to the frigid window. Ancient, isn't it? And if you look really closely, you can spy my high technology device I use for an alarm clock.




Here is my evil shower. Believe it or not, the shower curtain is also green. Something must have happened with the lighting. That's what I get for taking these pictures at 10:00 at night. So okay, it's less of a "lime" green and more of a. . . mint green. Does that make it any better? Or is that worse? :)




The shower knobs of doom.


Do you have any eccentricities in your life that really should make it into a book?

Current Theme Song (aka what's playing on my ipod right now): White Shadows by Coldplay.

The Archived Adventures!

As a character on my own adventure out here at the Smithsonian, I’m discovering all over again that little details are so important for a story in making that final leap from trite cliché to startling reality. I keep seeing all these things, little things, that would make a story of an ordinary girl (aka – me) in a very ordinary story (overcoming impossible obstacles in discovering who she is becoming as a young woman all while finding true love! Ahem. Okay, the last part is more wishful thinking) pop out from the page, if I happened to live between the lines of a book.

Here is a list of some quirks of my personal adventure that I’ve discovered that might not make it into the story from an untrained eye:


1. My shower. It doesn’t believe in this temperature called “warm.” It’s against its religion. It has two preferences – volcanic, and glacial. It speaks both these languages fluently, and often switches between them if I breathe on them wrong.

2. I have ancient space heaters (but ironically with a very posh lobby. I swear, you’d think we were millionaires) – but you know the kind, where you don’t see a temperature, but just a little knobby and have to play a careful guessing game to get the right temp. And add to the mix my four other room roommates who we each have our definition of the “right” temperature.

3. My shower is green. Lime green.

4. I have no insulation on any of my apartment windows, and only one sheet of glass. So it gets cold here, very fast (and my head when I sleep is next to the window, which is kinda funny, especially since I like sleeping in a tank top. The space heater is next to my head too. I like the combination of hot and cold. Yes, I’m weird, I know).

5. I have clothes on every surface of my bedroom, all clean, but none in the closet (okay, there’s a few).

6. I survive off of pop tarts, instant breakfasts, and fruit smoothies in the morning. Lunch is a sad affair of the same peanut butter and jelly day after day after… Dinners are my specialty though ;)

7. We had a mouse in our apartment. On the fifth floor. And I have no idea how he got up here. I’ve only seen him once (and hopefully never again).

8. Metro tickets are expensive, and I still feel sick every time my little card number goes down.
9. I rock out to my ipod every morning on the way to work, and I see other very upstanding businessmen listening to theirs too (which I find absolutely hilarious) and I can’t help but wonder if they are secretly listening to Metallica. It’s a fantastic image.

10. I like Metro surfing. Call me juvenile, but it’s fun. I do it discreetly, of course.

11. We have records as decorations on our walls. It’s AWESOME.

12. Our dishes are the most random hodge-podge you have ever seen. It’s like all the previous interns stole just one glass or one cup from every apartment in the building and brought them to our apartment. There is one bowl that I swear is going to explode any day now.


There’s more (oh there’s always more, bwahahaha!) but I shall forebear.

Current Theme Song (aka what's playing on my ipod right now): I Still Love You by Stuart Chatwood [Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones soundtrack].


One of the best parts of technology has to be the glimpses into the secret life of authors seeing their pad and all the quirkiness that is them. This remains true for author Brandon Mull. He is the author of the New York Times bestselling Fablehaven series. And yes, he really is as nice as he appears in the video. I believe this is a video shown at his launch party (and later snuck onto YouTube. Bwa ha ha ha!). The best part is when his wife shows where he really writes his books. Have an utterly fantastic weekend everyone!

Current Theme Song (aka what's playing on my ipod right now): First Time by Lifehouse.


It is super secret agent time. Time to whip out my mad super hero skillz (yes, that cool. I'm whipping out the z). Because I am about to undertake a mission so sinister it can only be fathomed in the depths of a really dark place. And cold too, I'm betting. Get this - I am about to infiltrate... the happiest place on earth.

Yes, Disneyworld. That happy place.

What? You think that is easy? I must don all my secret gear, go undercover and meld in, looking like a normal happy 22 year old with her family. No easy feat. No surrie. *shakes head*

So - away with my WriterGirl cape I say! I must don civillian clothes. Blend in. Act natural. But oh, I will be watching, oh will I be watching. Every happy squeal you make when on seeing Mickey, every giant turkey leg and churro you consume, I will be there. You see, that's what we crazy writers do. We watch, we learn, and then we write fantastic stories. You never know who will be watching. And if I have a spot of fun on the Tower of Terror? So be it. It's all part of the mission.

Now the only question left is - who should I get a picture with? I need proof I was there after all, or you might not believe me. Not believe a writer? Pah! ;)

WriterGirl, over and out.


[You will be getting a "Best Of" next week from my old blog, a place very few have seen. I have some very cool adventures to share with you]. Really now, WriterGirl over and out.


(P.S You are all awesome). *Ahem* WriterGirl OVER and OUT.

...


...

(awesome) *dashes off*

Current Theme Song (aka what's playing on my ipod right now): Still Alive by Lisa Miskovsky.


Euphoria. Yep, that's right.

What is better than soap bubbles, fresh bread or cookies? (okay, maybe not cookies). Meeting one of your favorite authors. Mine came on Saturday in the form of the super humble and incredibly kind person of Brandon Sanderson.

You don't know who Brandon Sanderson is? Gasp! *faints*

Here, go visit this Feature Fun Friday and watch this video for the making of the artwork for one of his books.

Now that I'm satisfied you are properly drooling over the pretty cover, he is none other than the "chosen one" to finish The Wheel of Time series by the late Robert Jordan. But his own books are nothing short of critically amazing. Overthrowing the evil overlord via Ocean's Eleven type heist? SOLD! And he is also the author of the incredibly funny Alcatraz Vs. the Evil Librarian series for kids (hilarious. He has a whole rant on why authors are people who like to torture other people).

And I got to meet him.

And not only that, he TWEETED about me - by name!

While in line, I tried to think of something intelligent, witty, with a dash of humor to say to him. Didn't pass on any of those marks, but I did manage to not stutter, pass out, or generally fall over (which I am prone to do in the best of circumstances). We had a wonderful brief conversation. I heard him mention to someone else that they could just hang out until the (uber) line died down and then they could talk more. Jumped on that bandwagon. I heard some great stories and it was a blast. I even got to meet some other authors who had come to see him.

And then it came time to sign stock. I can't remember exactly how it happened, but we (me and two other guys Mr. Sanderson seemed to know who) volunteered to help pass him books, stick on stickers and inserts, and general other slave labor stuff. Best hour ever. We were able to talk so open and frank and I heard some incredibly awesome things. I was in seventh heaven.

I even got a picture with him - so so cool.



And here is a shot of all the of books we helped move. :)



He thanked us and shook our hands and then one of the guys next to me (was it Josh?), he said that Brandon should about tweet about our monkey slave labor. So Brandon whips out his phone and says "I can do that right now." Little keypad boops start flying and viola! Insta-famous. Here is my proof.




My name, right there. So cool! Best part of this? Less than twenty seconds after he finishes, one of them gets a text from a friend say OMG! Brandon Sanderson just tweeted about you! :D

So yeah, totally famous now. ;)